Stylish `Blade' Has an Edge / Snipes looks the part in vampire thriller

Published 4:00 am, Friday, December 25, 1998

"Blade," just released on home video, has Wesley Snipes, vampires, guns with silver bullets and pale bodies that blister and explode in the sun.

But don't dismiss it as a typical thriller -- there's more than that going on. Big as it is, "Blade" is meticulous and subtle.

I love the way director Stephen Norrington uses odd little one- and two-second shots -- sometimes to convey information, other times for no reason except that it has a subconscious rightness. A brief flash of a young blond vampire baring her teeth ends one sequence; sexy, scary and weird, it comes out of nowhere. "Blade" seems of a piece, as if the director was in tune with the material and knew what he was doing. In making this industrial-size pop entertainment, Norrington compromised nothing. "Blade," based on the Marvel Comics series, is about a stalker of vampires (Snipes) who has some vampire blood himself, which gives him special powers.

Snipes looks great, in black leather coat, leather vest, sunglasses and Grace Jones hairstyle. Like Jean- Claude Van Damme, this is one action hero who is not going to let a life-and-death struggle with the forces of evil get in the way of his weekly salon appointments. I admire that.

HOLLYWOOD VIDEO

Jim Carrey Under Fire for a Painting That Looks Like Sarah Huckabee SandersEntertainment Weekly

Bassett, Hardwick honor politicians, familyAssociated Press

Jewelry designer Martin Katz's path to fameAssociated Press

Steven Spielberg on his new project, 'Ready Player One'Fox5DC

Jonathan Pie Gives His Hot Take on the New 'Cold War'Storyful

Iggy Azalea Opens Up About Burning al of Nick Young's ClothesWibbitz

Irish Woman Celebrates Saint Patrick's Day With Fiddle Session on Flight to DublinStoryful

Harry Connick Jr.'s Secret to a Happy MarriageSouthern Living

Blade isn't feeling good, though. In addition to the physical complications caused by having vampire blood, he's emotionally screwed up. As an infant, he lost his mother to a vampire. The search for Mommy is an underlying motif and informs his relationship with Karen (N'Bushe Wright), a gorgeous hematologist he has to protect.

Stephen Dorff ("Blood and Wine," "City of Industry"), who is getting very good at playing smirky young villains, is Deacon Frost, an up-and-coming vampire boss. The picture sets up a conflict between "pure-blood" establishment vampires and the decadent youngsters who just want to pillage and have fun. While Blade is on a metaphorical search for Mom, Frost is out to kill Daddy.

The production design and cinematography are worth special attention. In the boardroom where the top vampires meet, everything is dark blue and shadowy, the faces pale and bluish. They all look as if they could use a good meal.